What’s it about? Kufa Vampir arrives in the lamp-lit city-state Flandore to serve as tutor and servant to Melida Angel. Melida struggles to use magic, an ability she should have inherited from her royal lineage. Kufa finds Melida truly lacks any aptitude for magic, thereby proving his employer’s hunch that she is an illegitimate daughter of commoners. Though he is ordered to … [Read more...] about [Review] Assassins Pride – Episode 1
[Review] ORESUKI Are You the Only One Who Loves Me? – Episode 1
What’s it about? Kisaragi Amatsuyu (Joro) is a normal boy who spends his time hanging out with his best friend Oga Taiyo (Sun-chan) and childhood friend Hinata Aoi (Himawari). He’s also on the student council, headed by the prim and proper Akino Sakura (Cosmos). One day, both Hinata and Akino ask Kisaragi out so they can confess… that they love his best friend. … [Read more...] about [Review] ORESUKI Are You the Only One Who Loves Me? – Episode 1
[Review] Kochoki – Episode 1
What’s it about? Young Kippoushi, who would later grow up to become Oda Nobunaga, is destined for greatness, but his childhood is marked with a delinquent past. As he aids local street rats in pilfering foreign treasure ships right from under his own father’s nose, the young warlord must face the consequences for his actions and learn to think on his feet. … [Read more...] about [Review] Kochoki – Episode 1
[Review] Demon Lord, Retry! – Episode 1
What’s it about? Akira Oono is about to start a new chapter of his life. After developing and supporting INFINITY GAME, his own MMORPG, he has finally decided to put the project to bed. As he takes the servers offline at midnight, he gets transported into a fantasy world and finds he's taken on the appearance of Kunai Hakuto, the demon lord boss of INFINITY GAME. He befriends … [Read more...] about [Review] Demon Lord, Retry! – Episode 1
[Review] NAMUAMIDABUTSU! -UTENA- – Episode 1
What’s it about? Heavenly deities Taishakuten and Bonten have descended upon the mortal realm to save it from its earthly desires after Dainichi Nyorai takes a leave of absence. The two buddha are ready to cleanse the earth and help it towards a period of enlightenment, but the 12 other heavenly deities are telling the two to chill out. … [Read more...] about [Review] NAMUAMIDABUTSU! -UTENA- – Episode 1
[Review] We Never Learn: BOKUBEN – Episode 1
What’s it about? Nariyuki Yuiga covets a special scholarship that will get him a full-ride scholarship into the college of his choice. Good news Nariyuki, you got it—so long as you can tutor literary genius Fumino Furuhashi and math whiz Rizu Ogata. While the two girls flourish on their strengths, their passion relies on succeeding at their catastrophically bad subjects. … [Read more...] about [Review] We Never Learn: BOKUBEN – Episode 1
[Interview] Newcomer manga artist Rutaro Hina on their career, works, and LGBTQ identities in Japan
Editor's Note: Though Hina does not necessarily identify as genderqueer, they have declined to state what their gender is and requested Anime Feminist use they/them pronouns. 添書：陽名先生はX ジェンダーではないが、Anime Feministのインタビューに対しては性別を公開せず、英語版では代名詞をThey/Themを使っております。 Rutaro Hina, 21, is a newcomer manga artist from Tokyo who now resides in Chiba Prefecture. They first debuted as a … [Read more...] about [Interview] Newcomer manga artist Rutaro Hina on their career, works, and LGBTQ identities in Japan
[Review] The Quintessential Quintuplets – Episode 1
What’s it about? Smart loner Fuutarou Uesugi finds out he can clear his family’s debt by becoming a tutor for a rich family willing to pay five times the going rate. Well that makes sense, because he’s teaching their quintuplet daughters. … [Read more...] about [Review] The Quintessential Quintuplets – Episode 1
[Review] Dimension High School – Episode 1
What’s it about? Junpei Shirayama finds a rock at school one day that ends up dragging him, three classmates and their science teacher into a parallel anime universe. The five dudes must solve a Sphinx’s riddles to save the earth or die trying. The rock has anime eyes. … [Read more...] about [Review] Dimension High School – Episode 1
[Feature] How NOT to Enter a BDSM Relationship: Consent and abuse in Demon Lord
CONTENT WARNING: Discussions of sexual abuse, slavery, and BDSM; NSFW screenshots. SPOILERS for the entire How Not to Summon A Demon Lord anime series. Is it okay to own another person? Frankly, the answer is no. Notwithstanding the historical foundations of slavery the United States is built upon, there’s still modern-day slavery perpetuated by the prison-industrial … [Read more...] about [Feature] How NOT to Enter a BDSM Relationship: Consent and abuse in Demon Lord
[Review] BAKUMATSU – Episode 1
What’s it about? Choshu Samurai Shinsaku Takasugi was meant to lead a crusade against the seclusionist Tokugawa Shogunate, leading to the Meiji Restoration that rapidly industrialized Japan, but a fateful encounter with a time machine sends Shinsaku, with his best friend Kogoro Katsura, into an alternate steampunk Japan. Why does Takasugi have a boob-window shirt on? … [Read more...] about [Review] BAKUMATSU – Episode 1
[Review] Xuan Yuan Sword Luminary – Episode 1
What’s it About? The Taibai Empire seeks world unification through the use of mass-produced war machines known as “constructs.” Sheep herders Fu Yin, Fu Ning and Pu Zhou are victims of the Taibai’s thirst for conquest as their own village is destroyed. Sisters Yin and Ning become traveling martial artists to make a meager living on the road while Zhou is enslaved by the empire … [Read more...] about [Review] Xuan Yuan Sword Luminary – Episode 1
[Feature] The challenges of a queer immigrant and the shortcomings of A Certain Marriage
At first glance, A Certain Marriage by Ruri Kumashika is an attractive addition to the expanding collection of LGBT-oriented comics coming out of Japan. It tells the story of Saki Honjo, a Japanese woman who moved to Los Angeles to join her high school girlfriend Anna Abel, and their journey toward marriage. A bitter-sweet story, A Certain Marriage delves into the beauty of gay … [Read more...] about [Feature] The challenges of a queer immigrant and the shortcomings of A Certain Marriage
[Feature] An Analysis of Magical Sex-Change (TSF) Manga
Let’s get something out of the way:I’m about to talk about some problematic stuff. Some of it is pornographic and graphically violent. So I’m flagging you all with this content warning. I’m going to be talking about issues with gender dysphoria, rape, and sexual harassment. Also, given the topic features characters who change their gender presentation throughout the story, … [Read more...] about [Feature] An Analysis of Magical Sex-Change (TSF) Manga